


Learning

by BashfulGnome



Series: 5 Years of Wrecking [2]
Category: Wreck-It Ralph (Movies)
Genre: Best Friends, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-17
Updated: 2018-12-17
Packaged: 2019-09-15 15:21:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16935723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BashfulGnome/pseuds/BashfulGnome
Summary: Ralph shares an old pastime with his best friend.





	Learning

**Author's Note:**

> Original post date: Nov. 10, 2017
> 
> Original note: Week 2: Ralph and Vanellope! I wanted to write something light and fun for these two, since a lot of my fics tend to be analytical and pensive and stuff. This one can take place anytime after the movie, but I had a post-epilogue setting in mind. Happy reading!

"Come on, Ralphie!"

"Slow down, kid! You're gonna make me spill the pebbles!"

Ralph followed Vanellope up the hill to the clearing where the taffy swamp sat, at the base of the candy cane tree where they first met. He carefully pushed a wheelbarrow full of hard candy stones they'd spent the previous evening collecting. Vanellope had insisted on keeping the stones near the castle so they could find them the next morning, but it made for a long trek to their destination.

"Okay," Ralph sighed as he released the handles of the wheelbarrow, letting its legs land on the dusty ground with a soft plop, "here we are."

"Geez, it took ya long enough!" Vanellope glitched onto the top of the pile, bouncing with excitement. "Show me the trick!"

"Gimme a minute, I gotta find the right one…" Ralph examined the pile and selected a medium-sized, flat-bottomed yellow stone that fit comfortably between his thumb and index finger.

"So, first thing's first," he started, taking on something of a scholarly air. "A good skipping stone's gotta be dense and have at least one flat side."

Vanellope immediately broke into a cheeky grin and stifled a giggle. "Sounds familiar to me!"

Ralph shrugged good-naturedly. "I know, I know. C'mon, work with me here."

She waved off the comment. "Go on, continue your presidential briefing."

"All right. As I was saying, you need a flat side or it won't skip right. Now, you hold it like so, and…" He slowly turned his arm outwards and then flicked it forward in a sideways arc, releasing the stone.

_PLIPPLIPPLIP…_ _**PLUNK!** _

Vanellope shot up off her perch with a whoop and a whistle.

"YEAH! I wanna try!"

Ralph felt a tinge of pride swell up in his chest. "Heh, knock yourself out. Here, just like I showed you."

After a few minutes of form adjustments and selecting an adequately flat turquoise pebble, Vanellope hurled the candy rock towards the taffy. It skipped once, bounced at an oblique angle, and ricocheted off of the trunk of the candy cane tree with a sharp  _clink_ , landing a few feet away from the swamp's edge.

She glitched into a victorious jump and swung a fist in the air. "Are you seein' this, Ralph? I did it!"

"Hey, great start– top shelf!"

"Top shelf!" Vanellope hopped up and bumped Ralph's outstretched fist.

"Now, aim off to the left or you'll keep hitting the tree."

Vanellope had already grabbed another handful of pebbles and started firing them off one by one. A few sunk immediately, but the rest skipped once or twice before sinking or bouncing away. Sensing a challenge, Ralph picked up a large, orange, nearly-perfect disc-shaped stone and whipped it across the swamp. The stone skipped four times in quick succession, then glided across the remainder of the gooey surface to the opposite shore. He laughed and dusted off his hands in accomplishment.

"Whoa, how'd a big klutz like you get to be so good at this?"

Ralph put a hand behind his head. "Hah, well, nobody really used the lake behind the apartments for anything. I mean, nobody except the ducks, and they didn't mind watching me goof around."

"You're lucky you didn't have to hide. This'd never work inside Diet Cola Mountain," Vanellope responded quietly.

Ralph put a hand on his friend's head and smiled when she looked up at him. "Remember, you don't have to hide anymore. You can really let 'em fly out here and nobody's gonna give you a hard time."

Vanellope beamed. "Now there's an idea…betcha couldn't throw a whole bunch at once."

He chuckled. "Well,  _Miss President_ , I'm not a betting man. But for you, I'll accept the wager."

The wrecker dipped one enormous hand into the wheelbarrow and scooped out a pile of assorted stones. He approached the swamp, readied his arm, and flung the contents of his grip towards the taffy like a hail of sugary shrapnel.

A rainbow of different sizes and shapes danced across the taffy and the ground nearby, covering the swamp, before the clumsier pieces sunk into the liquid with a  _thwoop_. One large, round, green stone stayed in place on the taffy's surface, drifting towards the edge.

"Woohoo! Look at 'em go, kid!"

Vanellope squinted. "Wait, isn't that…?"

The round item bobbed up out of the taffy and rolled onto the shore, gasping and flailing about.

"Sour Bill?!" the two friends exclaimed in unison.

The president and the wrecker rushed over to the edge of the swamp.

"Aw man, sorry about that! Here, lemme clean that off before it dries." Ralph picked up the candy assistant and held him at face level.

" _ **NO!**_  No– I'm fine. Please, put me down."

As soon as his feet touched the ground, Sour Bill spun his body at a brisk whirl, while keeping his hands and feet held in place. The action sent wet chunks of taffy raining in all directions as Ralph and Vanellope shielded themselves from the sticky onslaught. Before any questions could be asked, the frazzled green candy took off in the direction of the castle, muttering something about official duties that needed his attention.

"…Sheesh, I was just gonna wipe him on my shirt. What was he even doing in there?"

Vanellope wracked her brain for a moment before it dawned on her.

"Maybe you're not a bettin' man, Ralphie, but Sourface sure is. Looks like he lost a big one with Crumbelina. If you gamble too much with her, you can't nap in peace 'till you're even."

"Okay then–" Ralph clapped his hands together and made a mental note not to learn more about this than he had to– "let's get back to business. How's about I line up some gumdrops on the other side and see if you can skip a stone into 'em?"

"Yeah, show me targeting! I wanna be a fiend with these babies!" Vanellope clenched her fists around the stones in anticipation.

They both knew this was how it should be – Stinkbrain, Fartfeathers, a bit of weirdness, and a good time.


End file.
